Review of a.rawlings' reading in Calgary

a.rawlings (in a green dress with a cool beaded necklace) was also reading from her debut book Wide Slumber For Lepidopterists (Coach House, 2006). After rawlings’ reading last night, I wanted to pass a note that read: “fucking fabulous”. Expletive necessary.

rawlings’ poems & performance are exciting. By exciting, I mean a thrill to see & hear. WSFL uses the vocabulary of lepidopterists (someone who studies butterflies & moths) to take a journey through sleep via the life-cycle (& afterlife) of a moth. Sound overly-conceptual? This is not just a think piece, folks. The sensual performance of language (both on the page & on the stage) might just take your breath away. “PUPA: PARASOMNIA” is perhaps the best sex poem (i.e., most sexy sex poem) I’ve heard, maybe ever. By extending her expression beyond everyday use of language & into the realm of sound art, rawlings’ work is a full-body experience.

Her a “hoosh a ha a hoosh a ha” sound of a moth’s wings, & careful & precise movements punctuate her performance (& the page text), to great effect.

One of the problems with combining art forms (dance here mixes with sound art, poetry) is that oftentimes the artist is accused of doing at least one of the forms poorly. I think that rawlings manages to not come up short in any of these forms, &, in particular, I was struck by how a conscientious blending of forms might be what enable rawlings’ perfect sense of rhythm & inform her assiduous use of stillness & silence to accentuate movement & sound.

Fucking fabulous.

Reminded me about the importance of looking in a mirror during rehearsal. Also, of the importance of rehearsal in the first place.